Time running out for historic hangar

Friday

Jun 29, 2007 at 12:01 AMJun 29, 2007 at 3:27 PM

Area residents, town and state officials, and nonprofit organizations have all had their say, and now the fate of Hangar 24 at Hanscom Field rests with Massport. Massport last month requested that the Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) enter into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to allow the demolition of the hangar, which is included in the Inventory of Historic Assets of the Commonwealth, to make way for active aviation on the 8-acre site. As part of an ongoing consultation process, MHC facilitated a June 15 meeting between Massport and area town officials and members of the public, as well as representatives from the Concord Historical Commission and Save Our Heritage, a Concord-based historic and environmental preservation group. The meeting also marked the start of a two-week public comment period, which ended last Friday, June 29.

Ben Aaronson/Staff Writer

Area residents, town and state officials, and nonprofit organizations have all had their say, and now the fate of Hangar 24 at Hanscom Field rests with Massport.

Massport last month requested that the Massachusetts Historical Commission (MHC) enter into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) to allow the demolition of the hangar, which is included in the Inventory of Historic Assets of the Commonwealth, to make way for active aviation on the 8-acre site.

As part of an ongoing consultation process, MHC facilitated a June 15 meeting between Massport and area town officials and members of the public, as well as representatives from the Concord Historical Commission and Save Our Heritage, a Concord-based historic and environmental preservation group. The meeting also marked the start of a two-week public comment period, which ended last Friday, June 29.

Massport spokesman Richard Walsh said there is so no set schedule moving forward, but that Massport would likely respond to all comments by late July.

“We will review the comments and we will respond appropriately,” Walsh said.

But Lincoln and Hanscom Area Town Selectman (HATS) Sara Mattes said she was not optimistic about the future of the hangar, which once housed the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, the MIT Lincoln Lab Flight Facility and the Air Force Electronic Systems Command.

“I personally don’t hold out much hope. The comments from our side of the table seem to always disappear into the ether,” Mattes said at a HATS meeting on June 28. “[The MHC] doesn’t seem to have much with teeth to respond to the community’s position.”

According to MHC Executive Direction Brona Simon, the Commission has no approval or veto power over state agencies like Massport. The best way to affect Massport’s decision, Simon said, is for people to voice their concerns during the comment period.

In addition to letters from concerned residents, Save Our Heritage, both the Lincoln and Concord boards of selectmen sent position letters to Massport. Rep. Jay Kaufman, D-Lexington, also drafted a letter, Mattes said.

Several organizations, including Save Our Heritage, have expressed interest in converting Hangar 24 into an aviation history museum. But Mattes said Massport has remained steadfast in its position that the hangar should be used for an aviation purpose.

“Massport has always been used for aviation activity and our goal is to return it to that use,” Walsh said.

Mattes expressed concern about the public safety consequences should Massport locate a fixed base operator (FBO) on the hangar site. Mattes said such an operation would require a large-scale fueling center, known as a “fuel farm,” which would be located within the impact zone of several residential communities and an office complex, and which would sit atop Bedford’s aquifer. In addition, Mattes said public safety officials from Lincoln and Concord have voiced concerns about their ability to access the area with emergency vehicles.

If Massport were to go ahead with a proposal for an FBO at the site, there would be little recourse for the towns, which have no zoning control over the airfield, Mattes said.